Eating Around the World (From Home....And Gluten Free...): Suriname

Welcome to Suriname! According to Google, Suriname has a population of 575,991 people, and the capital is Paramaribo. Their official food is:

Suriname Map and Satellite Image

Chicken and Rice, as well as Kouseband!

Do you have any idea what Kouseband is? I had no idea. When I looked it up, it is also known as Long Beans. I had a hard time finding them, but finally found them in an Asian market close to home. As for chicken and rice, I tried to find an authentic way to make chicken and rice. Here's what I did:

SURINAMESE NASI

2 C Cooked Rice

Chicken

1 lb Chicken Breast

3 Garlic Cloves

1 Piece Ginger, about 2 inches

1 tbsp Kecap Manis (sweet soy sauce) (I had to make my own)

1-2 Flat Leaf Parsley, stems and leaves

1 1/2 tbsp Butter

1 C Chicken Broth

Stir Fry

1 tbsp Vegetable Oil

1 Onion, Chopped

1 tsp Shrimp Paste

4 Cloves Garlic, crushed

1 tsp Ginger, chopped finely

Chicken, shredded, from above

Rice, from above

1 piece Lemon Grass, smashed

1 tsp Galangal, finely chopped

2 tbsp Kecap Manis

3 tbsp Soy Sauce

Handful Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped

Sides

Fried omelet, cut in strips (I just put salt and pepper in)

Fried Plantains

Add all the ingredients for chicken (except for chicken broth) to a pan.
Add chicken broth until the chicken is just covered.
Bring the pot to a boil and cook the chicken on medium heat until it is cooked through.
Take the chicken out of the pan and let cool. Once it is cool, shred the chicken.
Boil down the leftover broth of the chicken until it starts to thicken, add the shredded chicken and mix until all the moisture is absorbed.
Add oil to a hot skillet (we used the wok).
Add onion and fry until translucent. Add the shrimp paste and break it up with the onions.
Add the garlic and ginger and stir fry.
Add smashed lemon grass and stir fry.
Add chicken and stir fry.
Add galangal and kencur and stir fry.
Add rice and stir fry.
Add kecap and soy sauce.
Stir until it is mixed well.
Remove the lemon grass pieces.
Sprinkle with flat leaf parsley.

(Source: https://rootzrecipes.com/surinamese-nasi/#wprm-recipe-container-200) This site has a ton of helpful hints that I didn't write up. Take a look at it before you make this.

FRIED PLANTAINS

2 Very Ripe Plantains

1 egg

1/2 C Gluten Free Flour

1/2 C Cornstarch

2 tbsp Milk

2 tbsp Brown Sugar

Pinch of Salt

Oil for frying

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg, flour, milk, sugar, cornstarch, and generous pinch of salt.
Add water gradually, to make a thick, smooth batter.
Set batter aside for 15 minutes.
Cut the plantains diagonally into 1/3 inch pieces.
Place the plantains in the batter to coat.
Heat oil in a deep skillet until it is around 350 degrees.
Cook the plantains in the oil until they are nicely browned on each side. You will need to turn them once or twice.
Drain on a paper towel, and sprinkle with salt.

Of note with this recipe, we had a lot of batter left over so we fried it like fry bread. It was very tasty!

(Source: https://www.thespruceeats.com/fried-plantain-with-spicy-peanut-sauce-3028860?utm_campaign=shareurlbuttons&utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest)

Long Beans

1 lb Long Beans

4 Cloves Garlic

4 tbsp Kecap Manis

2 tbsp Butter

Trim the long beans as you would green beans. (I left mine long, but would recommend cutting them into smaller pieces.)
Heat butter in skillet.
Add Garlic and fry for about 30 seconds.
Add long beans, and cook until al dente.
Add Kecap Manis and continue to stir until done to your liking.

The verdict? To us, the Nasi wasn't anything exciting. It tasted like fried rice to us. And the recipe made a TON of it, so we've been eating it for a week. We did enjoy the different flavor profiles - the galangal, lemon grass, and shrimp paste gave it a depth of flavor - but overall, we were not very impressed. The fried plantains were OK as well. These were better than other plantains, but I am just not a fan of them at all. I much preferred the fried batter! The long beans were basically the same as green beans. I didn't find a specific recipe for them, so I made it up with what I was working with. We ended up cutting the beans up and mixing it in with the Nasi.

So the rating. We are both going to rate the dishes on a scale of 1-10.

ME
Taste of Surinamese Nasi (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 6